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Mercedes-Benz European Delivery
by Greg Rubenstein
Zoom an e-mail to
Greg
- Taking delivery of your new Mercedes-Benz at the Sindelfingen factory
in Germany is an ideal way to combine a European vacation and buying
a Benz, perhaps at a discount. It's easier than you might think, and
an adventure awaits!
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Your room is in the Parkhotel Adler, a German landmark owned and operated by the same family for 559 years. Outside, your new Mercedes-Benz is parked at the ready, eager to join you for another day of exploration. Fulfilling this fantasy can be easy as contacting your favorite Valley Mercedes-Benz dealer.
How, you might logically ask? Simple. For more than 40 years Mercedes-Benz has operated a European Delivery Program, offering new-car buyers an unforgettable combination of travel to and though Germany. plus a discounted purchase price (on many models) of a new Mercedes-Benz. It all starts with a dealer visit at least four months before you'd like to take delivery of your car. You'll speak with the dealer's European Delivery Program specialist and proceed through the normal buying process; selecting your model, color, equipment packages, accessories and such. Perhaps a few suggestions? Having recently tested a variety of Mercedes-Benz models, we can recommend the newly revised SLK350 Roadster as a little convertible gem (starting around $48,000), while the CLK500 Cabriolet offers stunning performance and four-seat drop-top comfort ($63,000). If you prefer a sedan, the seductive CLS500 ($66,000) defies categorization with coupe styling in a four-door.
For performance, factor in the E55 AMG ($83,000) for supercar speed in a gorgeous E-Class sedan, or the S65 AMG ($170,000)--Mercedes-Benz' ultimate monster sedan, pumping out 604-horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque from its 6.0-liter V-12 engine. Mercedes-Benz has made the European Delivery Program hassle-free as possible by giving you 15 days of zero-deductible insurance, and by offering two exceptionally enticing travel packages. Once you've selected your car, allow the European Delivery Travel Department at Mercedes-Benz USA to help you arrange a dream European vacation itinerary. Choose the "Standard Package" and treat yourself and a guest to a single night's stay in one of Europe's 12 most distinguished hotels (see Hotel Options, below, for a complete listing). Of course, you are welcome to extend your stay by making your own travel arrangements for additional nights. Select the "Black Forest-Alps Rally Package" and combine the one-night's stay of the Standard Package with four additional nights in the Black Forest and Austrian Alps. With either package, taking European delivery of your new car starts with a tour of the Mercedes-Benz Sindelfingen factory, followed by a gourmet lunch (or breakfast with the tour afterward depending on your flight arrangements).
"It is exciting to go to the factory as their guest," says Wilhelm Hartman of Schumacher European Ltd. of Scottsdale, Ariz., who has been selling the Mercedes-Benz European Delivery Program for more than 25 years. "After a tour you are provided lunch, and then your car is waiting for you with your luggage all packed. Your [travel route] map is in the navigation system or you're provided with written instructions. It is an adventure." After your meal, you depart on the "Black Forest-Alps Rally Package" to begin an epic four-night "rally" that takes you into the Black Forest, through the Arlberg Pass in the Austrian Alps near Innsbruck and on to Munich. Your first night's stay is at the Schlosshotel Bühlerhöhe, following a 70-mile drive from the Sindelfingen factory. This hotel, on the Black Forest High Road, sits hidden in the forest above Baden-Baden, overlooking the Rhine Valley. Provided with your accommodations are a welcome cocktail, breakfast and use of the Schlosshotel Bühlerhöhe fitness and recreation areas.
A 100-mile drive awaits you the next day as your travels lead to a private park that hosts the historic Parkhotel Adler in Hinterzarten, Germany. Since it opened in 1446, the Parkhotel Adler has offered real Old World warmth, and your stay includes complementary welcome cocktails, dinner and breakfast. Hopefully you'll see no ghosts in the 550-plus year-old Parkhotel Adler, as you'll need a good night's sleep in preparation for day three, which features a 200-mile (or 270-mile depending on your route option) drive into Austria. Select the shorter route and you will be a guest of the Interalpen-Hotel Tyrol, just outside Innsbruck. At the end of the 270-mile trek you'll wind your way to into the heart of the Tyrolean Alps for a stay at the Hotel Zur Tenne. Either choice provides luxury meal and recreation options to wind down your day. Your final destination on the Rally Package is an 80-mile stint to Munich where accommodations at the Bayerischer Hof await. While breakfast is provided during your stay, you may want to explore the cosmopolitan offerings in the city's center (within walking distance), including the Opera House and theaters.
If you elect to end your journey here, you can drop off your car keys and documents at the reception desk and Mercedes-Benz will arrange to ship your car back home--a taxi voucher is provided to get you to the Munich airport for your return flight. If you haven't yet had enough of Europe in your new car, you can select from multiple alternate drop-off cities in a host of countries, including Germany, Spain, Great Britain, France and Switzerland. See the Drop-Off Cities for a complete listing. You can also explore the Mercedes-Benz European Delivery Program online at mbusa.com. Mercedes-Benz European Delivery Hotels
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Imagine
spending a night high in the Black Forest, dreaming of majestic
palaces and grand castles, illustrious monasteries and ancient ruins.
Only in the morning you rise from your slumber and realize it's
not a dream.
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